Makeup covered his face: bright pink lips, eye shadow up to his eyebrows, mascara lazily smudged all around his eyes, and buckets of blush. Up close, Eve could see permanent marker drawn all over the roots of the messy blond wig. His clothing was reminiscent of Sophie’s—a red tank top, tight jeans—but he’d attached an enormous price tag to it that read 50¢. Around his neck hung a small poster board with a hastily scribbled #2 on it.
And he wouldn’t stop talking, his voice nasal and falsetto.
“OMG, my dad hasn’t paid child support in foreeever. But that’s probably because he’s, like, in jail or whatever.”
Eve’s stomach lurched. She thought she might throw up.
Instinctively, Eve moved toward Sophie as Sophie croaked: “He is not! Stop it!”
“Seriously, like totally, I’m, like, white trash, like yeah.”
“Why are you doing this?”
“OMG, gotta go wash the fleas out of my clothes!”
Sophie leaned over, her hands on her knees, unable to catch her breath.
Eve reached for her and held her up. “It’s okay, Sophie, it’s okay.”
Mr. Flynn came toward them, yelling, “Hey, Brody! Hey!” The music had abruptly stopped.
“What is wrong with you!?” Eve screeched at Brody.
Everything Nessa had said about him had been true. His kind smile had meant nothing. He was as bad as they all claimed. How could she have thought any different for even an instant?
At Eve’s words, Brody stopped the performance. “Ha. What? It’s a joke.” He put out a hand to Eve, as if she’d ever come near him again.
Couldn’t he see she was literally holding up Sophie? That his little act had forced Sophie to buckle over?
Brody wore a laugh on his face, like he thought everyone else would laugh, too. And most did. Out of the corner of her eye, in the haze of her disgust, Eve spotted some of Brody’s guy friends chuckling into their palms.
“You’re disgusting!” Eve spat out as Sophie held tightly on to her arm, trying to keep her balance.
“Of course he’s disgusting. He’s dressed up as Sophie!” she heard Caleb say behind her. “So sensitive, geez!”
“Shut up!” another guy yelled from somewhere.
“Come here,” Brody insisted, putting a palm out to Eve once again.
“Don’t touch me!” Eve held her hand tight against her body in a fist.
The other day, when he’d called Sophie crazy, it had been a sign of some awfulness inside him. She knew she should’ve said something to him. Maybe because she hadn’t said anything, he’d thought it was okay to do what he had done. Why hadn’t she said something?
“Hey!” Mr. Flynn hollered as he continued to make his way through the crowd.
Brody moved toward Eve and touched her fist, trying to pull it to him.
“I said don’t touch me!”
Seemingly out of nowhere, Winston Byrd shot out of the crowd and pushed Brody with all his might. “She said don’t touch her! Stop!”
Brody probably would’ve fallen to the floor, but his guys caught him.
Caleb Rhines ran toward Winston, all three of the boys ignoring Mr. Flynn’s pleas to stop. “What is wrong with you, man?” Caleb shoved Winston, who backed away and bolted out of the gym.
Mr. Flynn finally arrived next to Brody. “Come on, Brody, let’s get out of here.”
“Yeah, get out of here!” Sophie hissed.
Brody paused, grinning at her, nudging off Mr. Flynn’s attempts to pull him away. “It’s just a joke, Silver Ledge.”
For a moment, Sophie seemed to morph into an entirely different person. The whole bottom half of her face quivered. Her shoulders wilted. Her mouth clamped shut, and then it tightened.
“Yeah, we know where you live. People talk, you know. Nice try keeping it secret, though,” he went on.
As quickly as Sophie’s spine had slumped over, it straightened. She held her head high. The Sophie that Eve recognized came back.
“Brody Dixon. Stop talking right now.”
For the first time, no murmurs or hollers could be heard in the gym. The only sound was Mr. Flynn directing another adult across the room to come help him.
Sophie’s jaw clenched. “I mean it. Stop.” Sophie took a step toward him, not a quiver left in her.
Eve remained where she was. How did Sophie speak back to him with such courage?
And did he say Silver Ledge? The apartment building? Eve had never been there, but she knew some kids in their district lived there. Who cared?
“Oh. What?” Brody goaded her. “You don’t want everyone to know you live in Silver Ledge? Like, a block from the jail?” Brody turned to the crowd and added, “I like my girls thrift store– and food stamps–free, you know?”
Some in the crowd gasped.
Eve tried to remember what had seemed sweet about Brody. Had it just been that he’d spoken to her? Told her about his dad’s girlfriend? Shared with her that he wanted to be an actor one day, but his dad didn’t like that? Was it just … his attention that she liked? How pathetic was Eve to let all that trick her? Attention had always been something she thought she hadn’t wanted, and yet she’d fallen for it.
Sophie pointed a finger at Brody’s chest. “People only like you because you’re rich. You’re a creepy, mean, disgusting excuse for a human being who will peak in high school before the world figures out you have no talent except for having a room for your ugly dog!”
Brody and his boys laughed. “What is she even talking about?” He turned to his friends. “Somebody’s still mad I didn’t ask her to the dance.”
At this, Sophie stalked out of the room, her high heels like mallets on the drum of the floor.
Eve turned to follow, but at the sound of Brody’s voice she stopped.
“Eve,” Brody said in a command, hand out once more. “Come on.”
“No.” Eve could finally breathe as Nessa arrived by her side.
“What?” Brody’s hand remained reaching toward her.
“Don’t talk to me.” Eve felt herself shudder. “Don’t come near me, ever again.”
The crowd behind her seemed to inhale as one, hushed.
Mr. Flynn at last succeeded in pulling Brody away. “Come on, now. Let’s get out of here.”
“Okay, fine!” Brody yelled back to the crowd as they left. “But, hey! Eve! Are you ever going to tell the truth?” He and Mr. Flynn neared the door. “Isn’t is obvious?” he hollered to the entire eighth grade. “Eve Hoffman wrote the list herself! She told me so!”
At that, the kids behind Eve moved away from her, joining Caleb and the other guys. Eve felt them watching her, and knew everyone’s feelings toward her had instantly flipped.
“It’s true,” Caleb told the crowd. “Eve wrote it. Brody liked her, so he didn’t want to tell on her. But now…”
Could Eve turn to her classmates, explain to them that Brody and Caleb were lying? No one would believe Eve, no matter how awful Brody had been that night. All he had to do was say the word and Eve was done for.
She could stay, and try to fight back.
But something else mattered much more.
Eve grabbed Nessa’s hand. They both knew what they had to do next.
Find Sophie.